Matt Scrape qualified for Foot Locker Nationals by finishing 4th at the Midwest Regional.
The state of Ohio will be well represented at Saturday's Foot Locker Nationals, as Matt Scrape, Chad Johnson and Zach Kreft have all qualified to compete at the prestigious meet which is set to take place at Balboa Park in San Diego.
Matt Scrape has had an excellent 2017 cross country campaign, as he's picked up 7 race wins, highlighted by his 1st place finish at the District Watkins Memorial meet where he ran under the 15 minute standard (14:59.54). His 4th place finish at the Foot Locker Midwest Regional made him eligible for Saturday's race.
Matt Scrape will compete for Syracuse University next year.
Chad Johnson, who won the DIII Ohio State Championship, enters Saturday's action as the 3rd ranked athlete in Ohio for the 5K distance. His 14:54.88 1st place result at the Colonel Crawford Early Bird Invitational was one of 8 race wins that the senior registered during the season. Johnson brings a wealth of big meet experience with him to San Diego; he competed in the 5K race at New Balance Nationals Indoor last March in New York City. Johnson claimed 6th place at the Foot Locker Midwest Regional.
Chad Johnson will compete for Iowa State University next year.
U.S. #1 in the 5K, Zach Kreft will look to end his high school cross country career with a national championship to complement the pair of state titles he's already collected. Kreft was the 1st place finisher at both the 2016 and 2017 DII Ohio State Championships. Kreft recorded 9 race wins this season including his outstanding 14:29.95 effort at September's Midwest Meet of Champions. Kreft was the runner-up at the Foot Locker Midwest Regional two weeks ago in Wisconsin.
Zach Kreft will compete for the University of Notre Dame next year.
The Ultimate Boys Foot Locker Preview by MileSplit USA's Bryan Deibel